For what it lacks in top-ranked players, the field for the final official PGA Tour event of 2022 makes up with fan-favorite names.
The Sea Island Resort in St. Simons Island, Georgia, plays host once again to the RSM Classic this week. The highest-ranked player in the field, Tony Finau, returns to Sea Island for the first time since 2014 and leads the short list of top-50 players in the world, including Brian Harman, Sepp Straka, Tom Hoge, Kevin Kisner and Seamus Power. Finau will come in fresh off his win in Houston. He’s also the last golfer to win consecutive events on the PGA Tour, doing so last summer.
Past champions teeing it up this week are Kisner (2015), two-time winner Robert Streb (2014, 2020), Chris Kirk (2013), Mackenzie Hughes (2016), Austin Cook (2017) and Tyler Duncan (2019). Sea Island resident Davis Love III will play the role of tournament host and highlights a small group of major champions in the field, which includes the likes of Stewart Cink, Jason Day, Jason Dufner, Zach Johnson, Francesco Molinari, Justin Rose and Webb Simpson.
Last year’s winner, Talor Gooch, has moved on to LIV Golf and will not defend his title this year. Charles Howell III, the 2018 RSM champion, has also moved to LIV Golf.
If you’re a fan of bonus golf, the RSM Classic is the event for you as four of the last six editions of the tournament have gone into a playoff, including three consecutive events from 2018-2020. Fans will clamoring for a playoff as this week’s Tour stop in Georgia will be the last of 2022 until the Sentry Tournament of Champions, Jan. 5-8 in Hawaii.
Following a Thanksgiving break, Tiger Woods will play in and host his 2022 Hero World Challenge, an unofficial event, Dec. 1-4 in the Bahamas. A week later, the QBE Shootout returns to Naples, Florida, Dec. 9-11, without longtime host Greg Norman, now the CEO and commissioner of LIV Golf.